Charmed to Death

by Rose Pressey

  He thought he was so clever.

  “Fine. Now tell me how you know where to find them.”

  “The witch has them, right?” he asked.

  “Yes, that’s right,” I said, looking at him suspiciously.

  “Do you want me to uncuff him?” the detective asked.

  I sighed. “I suppose we can let him go if he’s really going to take me to Nicolas, Liam, and Annabelle.”

  “I want them back just as much as you do,” Thomas said.

  The detective released Thomas from the restraints.

  “I doubt that. We’ll follow you. Lead the way.” I motioned for him to move.

  We traveled down the hallway to the conference room and over to the window. I climbed out first and then Thomas. The detective watched his every move. I explained everything that had happened to the detective standing guard outside the window. My mother came rushing over to me, but stopped in her tracks when she noticed Thomas.

  My mother gave Thomas the evil eye. “What happened? I was worried.”

  “No one is in the building. It’s odd.” I gestured toward Thomas. “Then this guy showed up. He says he knows where they are.”

  “I’m not sure about that.” She quirked an eyebrow and stared at him.

  I knew she was thinking exactly what I was thinking. We didn’t trust this guy further than we could toss him.

  “Well, I have some other news. The cat’s gone.” My mother tossed her hands up. “I can’t find him.”

  “As much as I want him to stay around, I can’t find him right now. I’m sure he’ll come back,” I said. “In the meantime, we have to find Nicolas, Liam, and Annabelle.”

  “I’m coming with you,” she said.

  Normally, I would have argued against that, but the idea of her staying here or going back to her shop simply terrified me. It might be dangerous where we were going, but I would just have to take that chance. It would be safer than leaving her alone. The last thing I needed was for my mother to disappear as well.

  “I’ll drive,” the detective said.

  “Thank you,” I said.

  At least we didn’t have to stress over my mother’s questionable driving skills, bless her heart. I had been bad at witchcraft. She was a terrible driver. I supposed we all had our issues. Some just worse than others.

  The detective went around and got his car. Before I climbed into the passenger seat I wanted to ask the other detective staying behind and looking for more clues if he’d seen anyone entering the building.

  “No, I saw no one go in and I was standing here the whole time. I thought it was odd when the other guy came out.”

  “Yes, that is strange.” I paused as I looked around. “What about the cat? Did you see the cat leave? He was here with us. My mother’s really concerned.”

  “You know, I did see the cat standing right here beside me, but I didn’t see him leave.”

  “Okay, thanks anyway,” I said.

  Surely the cat would turn up soon. Maybe he’d go back to the manor. I’d have to put up missing posters. Though he wasn’t my cat.

  I hopped into the car and buckled my seatbelt. “All right. There had better not be any shenanigans out of you.” I pointed at Thomas.

  “Usually I wouldn’t make that kind of promise, but right now I will,” Thomas said.

  Jon shifted the car into drive.

  “I’ll hold you to that,” I said.

  I still wasn’t sure if I should trust him. But I had no other choice right now other than to go along with it. I guessed I was desperate to find them.

  “All right, tell me where I need to go,” the detective said as he pulled up to the main street out of the parking lot.

  “The place is on the outer edge of Enchantment Pointe. Just head down the main street. I don’t know the names of the streets, so I’ll have to show you when we get there,” Thomas said from the backseat.

  “And tell me again how you know that they’re here.” There was no way I could hide the suspicion in my voice.

  “I saw the witch so I followed her,” he said nonchalantly.

  “You followed the witch?” My voice rose a level.

  “Yes, I did.”

  My mother glared at him as she sat next to him in the backseat. “And why didn’t you get them when you were there?”

  “I can’t overpower that witch. She’s powerful and Halloween is the only one who can handle her.”

  I guessed it was something that he thought I was powerful enough to handle the witch, but after all I was the leader. I was supposed to be powerful, but she had moved so quickly, and with all the magic I’d seen, I wasn’t sure if I would be able to take her on. She had some serious magic skills and I wanted to know where she’d gotten them.

  The detective pulled out onto the main road and we drove for a bit. It didn’t take long before I was becoming anxious.

  “Tell me again how much further we need to go?” I asked.

  Thomas motioned. “All right, at that stop sign you turn left.”

  He’d said this would take us out of town a bit. I was still questioning whether Thomas knew where he was going. Was he being honest?

  “How much further is this place?” my mother asked.

  “Just a couple of miles until we turn off. Once we do that, the turn is really close.”

  If he led us into a trap I would turn him into something much worse than a toad. An uneasy feeling settled in my stomach and wasn’t about to budge. I just couldn’t get it out of my head that he was luring us into a bad situation. I glanced back at Thomas. He smiled. I didn’t smile in return.

  “So you said to turn here?” the detective asked.

  “No, don’t turn here,” Thomas said.

  “But you just said to do that,” I said.

  “Yeah, that was before I saw the car behind us. I think someone’s following us.”

  I looked back and noticed a dark blue car back there. “What makes you think they’re following us?”

  “It’s just that they’ve been trailing us since we left.”

  “And you’re just now telling me this?” I asked. “Besides, they’re just going down this road. That doesn’t mean they’re following us.”

  “Even so, I get a bad feeling. I don’t think we should turn down there just yet. I think you should lose them first.”

  Jon looked at me for a decision.

  I nodded. “Lose the car.”

  Jon pushed on the gas. I looked over my shoulder and noticed that the car had accelerated as well. That was a good indication that maybe Thomas was right.

  Chapter 19

  We sped through the winding roads. The car hugged every curve. I was trying to hold on while the detective tried to lose the car. It was definitely following us because as he sped along it stayed right with us. The only problem was I couldn’t see who was in the car. It had tinted windows and the glare from the road hid the driver’s face too. I had to know who was doing this. We turned down the road and then made another left. The detective drove so quickly we were practically on two wheels when we made that turn. When I looked back the car wasn’t there.

  “Do you think we lost them?” I asked.

  My mother blew the hair out of her eyes. “I certainly hope so, because I can’t handle driving like that much longer.”

  Thomas turned around in the seat. “I think we lost them. Good job.”

  At least now I could release the pent-up breath I’d been holding. We weren’t in the clear completely. They could catch up with us. We needed to get out of there before they did.

  “Do you know where you’re at?” I asked the detective.

  “I think I know how to get out of here. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it.”

  “If I have to I can use my magic to see if there’s an easier way.”

  “No, I think I’m good.”

  No one seemed to want me to do my magic. I guessed they still worried that it was bad. They had nothing to worry about. He made a couple m
ore turns and then we ended up on the main road again, headed back in the direction we’d just come from. I kept a look out in the side mirror to see if the car was back there. So far we were good.

  “I hope they don’t find us again,” my mother said, looking through the back window.

  We drove the short distance and then reached the narrow street where Thomas had originally wanted us to turn. We made the right turn and drove down the isolated, narrow road. Dense, tall oak trees surrounded us. There were no houses or other buildings.

  “Where does this lead to?” I asked. “It seems kind of spooky.”

  “Oh, it’s definitely spooky,” Thomas said.

  “Are you playing tricks on us? I warned you about that before.” I pointed.

  He held his hands up. “I promise you that I’m not playing any tricks.”

  Yeah, as if he would tell me the truth.

  “How much further is it?” I asked.

  “It’s just right down there. See that turnoff? The house’s back there.”

  “Such an isolated place,” my mother said.

  “Well, when you kidnap someone don’t you want it to be secluded?” I said with a quirked eyebrow.

  “That’s a good point,” my mother said.

  Finally, we reached the little turnoff. Jon pulled the car down the long driveway and the rundown-looking house came into view. It looked as if no one had been there for a long time. The detective pulled up in front. As soon as he stopped I got out and ran to the door right away. I wanted to see if they were inside. The others ran right after me. I tried the door, but it was locked.

  “Oh, great. It looks like I’m going to have to do another spell again on this place too.”

  “I’m not sure if it’s such a great idea to just go barging in. What if that witch is in there?” Thomas asked.

  Why was he being such a scaredy-cat? I supposed he did have a point about barging in. One of the windows over on the right side of the house was broken at the bottom. If we had to we could get in that way. I hoped that wouldn’t be necessary though.

  I raced down the steps over to the window. The sound of a car caught our attention. We spun around and saw that same car that had followed us was coming up the driveway.

  “What do we do now?” my mother asked.

  “There’s no other choice, but I will have to go confront them.”

  There was no way that we could hide. They would see the car and know that we were here. A confrontation was the only way.

  “I don’t think you should just go out there and confront them,” my mother said.

  “I’m not going to let them bully us,” I said.

  “What if they have weapons?” My mother’s voice cracked.

  “I’ll take my chances.”

  She touched my arm. “I don’t know, Halloween. This is dangerous.”

  “I have to do this,” I said as I marched toward the car.

  The car was still moving when I started walking. Soon it came to a complete stop. It was the same one that had followed us a short time ago. A few seconds later the doors opened. The driver was the National Vampire Association receptionist. She looked even angrier to see me now than before. There were a few of guys with her. I didn’t recognize them. Maybe they were from that meeting, I wasn’t sure.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked.

  Marissa didn’t answer me as she glared. Her stare burned a hole right through me. She flashed her fangs and lunged forward as she attacked me.

  I hit the ground hard with her right on top of me. Her mouth was close to my neck. It appeared that she wanted to drain me dry. The rage in her eyes flared and was terrifying to see. I didn’t have time to think of doing a spell. Even worse, the guys she’d brought with her were now attacking the detective and Thomas.

  My worst fear of my mother being attacked was now a reality. I’d known I shouldn’t have let her come. I’d known this was dangerous. I’d just had that feeling and now I had no way of helping her. I was the worst daughter in the world. I had to stop them, but if I couldn’t even get this vampire off me then how would I get the guy off of her?

  I continued to struggle, placing my hands on Marissa’s arms and pushing her. She had almost impossible strength. There was no way I was getting away. I had to do this. My life depended on it. I recited words out loud.

  The wind picked up, swirling around her. Marissa was at my neck. I had been able to stop her up until now. Just as her lips touched my skin, she flew back right off me. My magic still worked. I had gotten her off me. I managed to scramble up from the ground.

  I spun around and raced over to my mother. The guy had her pinned down. I kicked him in the back. I didn’t know where I had gotten the strength. That spell must have really worked well this time. I’d never been able to fight like this before. Then the guy fell off her.

  My mother got up. “You saved me, Halloween.”

  As I looked around I realized the other guys had gotten off of the detective and Thomas. Things seemed to be moving. Everything started to spin. The next thing I knew I was on the ground. Everything went black.

  ***

  Light was coming toward me, and then, the opposite happened…everything went dark around me. I was alone. Where was everyone? I managed to get to my feet, still obviously woozy from something. Had I been drugged? There was a window in the room, but it was boarded up from the outside. Now at least I knew it was still light outside, but what day was it? How long had I been in here? The last thing I remembered was fighting with the vampires. Where was my mother, the detective, and Thomas? Immediately I thought the worst. We had obviously all been kidnapped. Had a terrible fate already gotten the rest of them? Was I the only one left? If that was the case then they could go ahead and take me too.

  There had to be a way to get out of here. I would have to try a spell. That window wouldn’t budge and the door was locked. I didn’t know where it led to on the other side. I recited the words and the energy was minimal.

  Someone had done something to bind my magic. That was the only explanation. I ran over to the door, trying to get out. When I twisted the knob and shoved it against the wood, it rattled a little, but didn’t open. I needed to keep trying. Once again I tried my magic. I recited the words again. I tried the door again. This time it moved a little more. It was closer this time so I had to do the spell over again.

  The words for the spell spewed from my lips. The room started to spin. I had to escape. This time the door opened. Wasting no time, I moved forward. Now I was free and surrounded by trees. I was in that old house, the one where Thomas had said we’d find Nicolas, Liam, and Annabelle. He’d tricked me. This was his way of getting me here to this house. I’d really fallen for that one. I had actually kind of believed him. Now I knew I was just a fool. I would never let anyone fake me out that way again.

  I stood back and looked at the house. I had to go in and see if the others were there. Mustering up every ounce of courage I could find, I rushed inside, turned to the left, and went up the steps right away. I checked all the rooms, but I was the only one in this house. Where could the others be? Before getting trapped in there I had to leave. I raced back outside. Quickly I had to come up with a plan.

  I could go down the drive and head back down that road. But it almost felt as if I would be leaving them behind if I took off, even though I knew I hadn’t seen them anywhere. I really didn’t think I could do that. Maybe a spell would help me and lead me in the right direction.

  Now more than ever I felt lost. Not only had I lost Nicolas, Liam, and Annabelle, but I’d lost the detective and my mother too. No one could be around me or it would end badly for them. I was bad luck. They just needed to keep their distance.

  Chapter 20

  All alone and I had to cast a spell. There would be no friends or relatives to help me out of this pickle. I had to forge all my power and cast an awesome spell that would lead me to everyone and stop whoever was doing this. I wondered if the only reason why
I had the powers was because I was taking energy from everyone around me. Maybe when I was all alone things wouldn’t be that great. I was about to find out. This time it was now or never. I had to give it a shot.

  I was at the abandoned house, surrounded by all the tall, dense trees. The branches swayed with the wind, as if they were watching me. I raised my arm skyward and then recited the words of the spell. Lucky for me, it felt as if something was working. I felt energy humming along my arms. It moved from my fingertips all the way down to my toes.

  My eyes were closed as I cast the spell. I wanted to have some kind of sign as to where to go or which direction to find everyone. That was the purpose of the spell. It was to lead me in the right direction. The spell wound down and I opened my eyes. But I certainly wasn’t prepared for what I saw in front of me. The witch’s eyes glowed like an animal’s. They weren’t human eyes anymore. They were bigger. This wasn’t the sign that I had been hoping for, but somehow, I would get their location out of her.

  “Who are you?” I asked.

  “It doesn’t matter who I am,” she said with a cackle.

  “I want my friends back now,” I said.

  I wanted to know why she had them. I wouldn’t even care her reason if I got them back. I would deal with her after that.

  “You can’t have them back,” she said.

  Now I was really angry. I would make her understand that I wouldn’t take no for an answer.

  Without answering, she lifted her arms and pointed at me. Then she started reciting words. She was speaking French, I believed. I couldn’t understand all the words. I should have studied more in high school. I had no way of counteracting her words when I didn’t know what she was saying. Nevertheless, I was prepared for a fight. Suddenly the spell hit me and I flew backwards, landing on the hard ground again. I was really getting sick of her spells tossing me around like that.

  I hurried to my feet before she had a chance to get the upper hand. I recited words and flashed a spell back at her.

  It didn’t cause her to fall backwards like the one she hit me with. She was a lot tougher than I’d realized. I would have to use all the energy I could find, but I didn’t know how I would become any tougher than I was now. There was only so much I could do.